Communications
OKOT 101 - COMMUNICATIONS Communications 101 In any relationship within your life, very few things are more important than communication. Whether it's with your parents, your spouse, your children, your friends or co-workers, communication is often the key to a successful relationship. As an officer within the Oath Keepers, you are not only expected to recognize and understand this as a fact, but also to understand that we are held to an even higher standard. The way that WE communicate sets the tone for everything from war to peace; from members staying happy and engaged within the family to being miserable or feeling 'left out'. Respect is at the heart of good communications. And also, a sense of humor. Within OKR for example, there is a long standing joke that Sir Carl wears a dress. He claims it's a kilt. It isn't. It's covered in flowers. It's a DRESS! He's also one of the fiercest battle tested warriors you will ever meet. Over the course of any relationship, it's these types of things which come out. And it's a testament to the fact we - as a team - have formed such a close bond that we can and do joke about such things. Oftentimes, the introduction of humor into a tense situation can diffuse it rapidly. Other times, especially as an officer, you have to put on your serious hat and find a way to calm down a guild member who is upset for a tile collision, or being scouted or even attacked. Simply stop, breathe, and think in any given situation about what communication method is best employed in order to resolve whatever the issue may be. Diplomacy Boards and the 'food chain' As our Charter and Codes of Conduct make clear, it is up to the officer corps to deal with issues that arise between our family and those outside of it. This is nowhere more imperative than in communication on another guilds' diplomacy boards. The rule is simple: if you're not an R4 or R5, stay off others diplomacy boards. Breaking this rule is grounds for reprimand under the '3 Strikes Rule'. Remember your oath: HONOR is at the heart of our success. R4s and R5s should be more than adequately trained and prepared to deal with using another teams' diplo boards in a thoughtful, respectful manner in order to calmly and efficiently resolve any inter-guild issues. GUILD WIDE COMMUNICATIONS From time to time it is necessary for a guild wide announcement or email to be sent. In the case of an announcement it should always be started with the fact that it IS an announcement to the team. The following is common practice: - TEAM ANNOUNCEMENT - Xxxxxxxxx, xxxxxxxxx. Xxxxxxx. Xxxxxxx. - END ANNOUNCEMENTS - These should only be coming from R4s and above. This method should be used both in game and in Line whenever a topic is important enough to be broadcast to the entire team or family. Guild-wide email should ALSO only be coming from an R4 or above. Far too many times of late there has been an abuse of this system and it can and does lead to confusion on the part of the non officers. A lot of times, while an R3 or non officer may be meaning to try and communicate something to the entire guild, they are often doing so without the full scope of knowledge about an issue and this makes us all look incredibly incompetent. As an R3, should you have an issue OTHER than being UNDER ATTACK that you feel needs to be communicated guild wide, please bring it to an R4 or GL and let them make the call. LINE AND THE IMPORTANCE OF IT The Line application has been chosen by our family as the preferred communication method when not in game. We use it to share strategy, resolve issues, joke around, and communicate both guild and family wide. It is also used most importantly to share screen shots. This is a key component both in diplomacy, the use of our RSS sharing plan, and the designation of war targets and strategies. As officers, you should always be engaging with your fellow team members and encouraging them that if they are not already using Line then they are missing out and that it will improve their gaming experience. PLEASE SAY AYE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU HAVE COMPLETED THIS SECTION AND ARE READY TO MOVE ON